The C's and P's of Marketing | What's the Diff?

Many people who have taken a marketing course have
learned about the "4 P's" of marketing. Are Product, Price, Place
and Promotion elements of this marketing formula something from the
past?

Bob Lauterborn, professor of advertising at the University of
North Carolina has tracked the success of new products introduced
into the U.S. According to Bob, 80 percent of new products fail
each year. With such a high failure rate, Bob notes that something
isn't working with our "mindset". He wants to replace the Four P's
with his Four C's.

Consumer wants and needs (vs. Products)

You can't develop products and then try to sell them to
a mass market. You have to study consumer wants and needs
and then attract consumers one by one with something each one
wants. Author of the movie Field of Dreams, J.P. Cancilla may have
exclusive rights to the phrase "build it and they will come". In
most cases, you have to find out what people want and then "build"
it for them, their way.

Cost to satisfy (vs. Price)

You have to realize that price - measured in dollars -
is one part of the cost to satisfy. If you sell
hamburgers, for example, you have to consider the cost of driving
to your restaurant, the cost of conscience of eating meat, etc. One
of the most difficult places to be in the business world is the
retailer selling at the lowest price. If you rely strictly on price
to compete you are vulnerable to competition - in the long
term.

Convenience to buy (vs. Place)

You must think of convenience to buy instead of
place. You have to know how each subset of the market
prefers to buy - on the Internet, from a catalogue, on the phone,
using credit cards, etc. Lands End clothing, Amazon Books and Dell
Computers are just a few businesses who do very well over the
Internet.

Communication (vs. Promotion)

You have to consider the communication instead of
promotion. Promotion is manipulative (ouch!) - it's from
the seller. Communication requires a give and take between the
buyer and seller (that's nicer). Be creative and you can make any
advertising "interactive". Use phone numbers, your web site
address, etc. to help here. And listen to your customers when they
are "with" you.

Developing a brand takes into account these considerations.
Developing a brand is developing a promise. When you take into
consideration the "4 C's" noted above you begin the process of
developing a brand! Custom Fit Online follows the "4 C's" approach
when developing strategy for our clients. These principals can also
be applied online.

What Do YOU Think?

How does the concept of the 4's fit into your business
strategic planning? Can you also apply these to the online
world... including website design and
development and the social media space? Please feel
free to add your comments, questions or suggestions below.